Racial Profiling Has Now Cost This Luxury Store Over $525,000

How one $349 belt ended up costing Barneys New York so much more.

Back in 2013, a number of New York City retailers came under fire for having racially discriminatory profiling practices, including luxury store Barneys New York. After the New York Attorney General's office investigated the store's practices, the retailer paid $525,000 in fines.

Now, the retailer has also had to settle with Trayon Christian, a then-19-year-old shopper who was accused of credit card fraud while buying a $349 Ferragamo belt with money he had saved up. Trayon filed suit against both Barneys and New York City after being handcuffed and held for two hours following the incident. New York City just settled for $45,000; Barneys has also agreed to settle for a currently undisclosed amount.

Trayon isn't the only customer who accused the retailer of unfair profiling: then-21-year-old nurse Kayla Phillips says she too was stopped by police after buying a $2,500 Céline purse with her tax return. The allegations brought protestors and a call for a boycott from civil rights groups.

Since then, Barneys has agreed to hire an anti-profiling consultant, change their policies around loss prevention issues, and re-train sales employees on the topic of profiling. Hopefully retailers will learn that racial discrimination won't just cost them money — it will also cost them valuable customer loyalty.